Interactive television program guide with selectable languages

#This invention relates to interactive television program guide systems, and more particularly, to interactive television program guide systems in which users may select a desired language for playing television programming and displaying program guide display screen text.

#Cable, satellite, and broadcast television systems provide viewers with a large number of television channels. Users have traditionally consulted printed television program schedules to determine the programs being broadcast at a particular time. More recently, interactive television program guides have been developed that allow television program information to be displayed on a user's television.

#Interactive television program guides allow the user to navigate through television program listings using a remote control. In a typical program guide, various groups of television program listings are displayed in predefined or user-defined categories. Listings are typically displayed in a list, grid, or table. Interactive television program guides are typically implemented on set-top boxes located in the homes of users. A typical set-top box is connected to the user's television and videocassette recorder. Program guides that run on personal computers or that allow program guide information to be obtained using the Internet are also available.

#FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram of an illustrative system in accordance with the present invention.

#FIGS. 2a and 2b show illustrative arrangements for the interactive program guide equipment of FIG. 1 in accordance with the principles of the present invention.

#FIG. 3 is an illustrative schematic block diagram of the user television equipment of FIGS. 2a and 2b in accordance with the principles of the present invention.

#An illustrative system 10 in accordance with the present invention is shown in FIG. 1. Main facility 12 provides program guide data from program guide data source 14 to interactive program guide equipment 17 via communications link 18. There are preferably numerous pieces or installations of interactive program guide equipment 17, although only one is shown in FIG. 1 to avoid over-complicating the drawing.

#Link 18 may be a satellite link, a telephone network link, a cable or fiber optic link, a microwave link, an Internet link, a combination of such links, or any other suitable communications link. If it is desired to transmit video signals over link 18 in addition to data signals, a relatively high bandwidth link such as a satellite link may generally be preferred to a relatively low bandwidth link such as a telephone line.

#The program guide data transmitted by main facility 12 to interactive program guide equipment 17 may include television programming data (e.g., program times, channels, titles, and descriptions) and other data for services other than television program listings (e.g., help text, pay-per-view information, weather information, sports information, associated Internet web links, etc.). The program guide data may be compressed if desired.